World’s Best Cyclist Skipping Olympics for Love

Tadej Pogačar is maybe in the best shape any cyclist has ever been, and he was already in France ahead of the Olympics. But he won’t be representing Slovenia in Paris in a last-minute change of course.

Pogačar pulled off the grueling Tour de France–Olympics double in 2021, winning the yellow jersey that year and then coming back to take bronze in the Olympic road race in Tokyo just six days later. 

He was set to attempt the double again this year after his record-setting domination in the Tour, which ended with yet another Pogačar stage win Sunday in Nice. (The race’s usual Paris finish was moved south because of the Olympics.) On Monday, though, the Slovenian federation announced that Pogačar was out of the Olympics due to fatigue.

Speaking to Dutch media Tuesday, though, Pogačar added another reason: The federation had snubbed his girlfriend, star cyclist Urška Žigart.

“It’s not the main reason, but for sure it didn’t help. I think she deserves her spot,” Pogačar said. “She’s the double national champion in road race and time trial.”

In June, Zigart won the Slovenian national title by 11 minutes, but she was snubbed for an Olympic slot in favor of the second-place rider. Zigart’s agent said the coach who made the pick “has damaged cycling and the Olympic committee for personal interests.”

When the omission was announced earlier this summer, English-language media variously translated Pogačar’s response as “disgusted” and “devastated,” but the message was clear enough either way. He shared the agent’s post with “So true, so true” on Instagram.

Pogačar has dominated cycling this year to a degree not seen in decades, winning six stages at the Tour de France and pulling off the first Tour de France–Giro d’Italia double since the 1990s. An Olympic medal won’t be added to that pile of accomplishments. “It is what it is, and now we can go on vacation together,” Pogačar said.